Historic cold wave grips Georgia

ATLANTA | Temperatures plunged to 6 degrees above zero in Atlanta and 6 degrees below zero at a remote weather station in the north Georgia mountains as the coldest air in years settled over the state.

It was still well below freezing across Southeast Georgia where lows were mostly around 20 degrees at dawn. It is not expected to get above freezing along the coast until noon.

Several metro Atlanta school systems closed Tuesday as were schools in South Georgia. Georgia’s southernmost county, Charlton, called off Tuesday classes. Downtown, Centennial Olympic Park officials said the cold led them to close the ice skating rink Monday evening.

One of the coldest temperatures in Georgia was minus 6, recorded shortly after 5 a.m. Tuesday at the U.S. Forest Service’s automated weather station near Brasstown Bald, the state’s highest peak.

At 6:30 a.m. it was 0 in Hiawassee and 2 degrees in Blairsville.

The weather service reported that the temperature also dropped to 6 degrees at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport around 6:52 a.m. Tuesday.

Many of Georgia’s temperatures early Tuesday were significantly colder than Kodiak and Juneau, Alaska, both at 39 degrees and Anchorage at 27 degrees.

“This is severely cold for these parts,” said Brian Lynn, a Weather Service meteorologist in Peachtree City. “Single digits are a rare event.”

Much of north Georgia was under a wind chill warning early Tuesday, meaning wind gusts could make temperatures feel as low as 15 degrees below zero or colder. Those conditions would mostly be felt only in the mountains, Lynn said.

A wind chill advisory, which could make temperatures feel up to 10 degrees below zero, was in effect as far south as Americus and the Savannah area.